Union College's Daniel Ciampini, left, and Ferris State's Travis Ouellette battle for a puck during the first period of an NCAA Frozen Four college hockey tournament semifinal game, Thursday, April 5, 2012, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson) less

Union College's Daniel Ciampini, left, and Ferris State's Travis Ouellette battle for a puck during the first period of an NCAA Frozen Four college hockey tournament semifinal game, Thursday, April 5, 2012, in ... more

Photo: MIKE CARLSON

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Union's Daniel Ciampini brings the puck up the ice during their men's college ECAC hockey game against Harvard on Tuesday Jan. 22, 2013, in Schenectady, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Union's Daniel Ciampini brings the puck up the ice during their men's college ECAC hockey game against Harvard on Tuesday Jan. 22, 2013, in Schenectady, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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Union's Daniel Ciampini (17), center, chases a loose puck when Yale's Gus Young (2) goes down during their hockey game on Friday, Feb. 15, 2013, at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) less

Union's Daniel Ciampini (17), center, chases a loose puck when Yale's Gus Young (2) goes down during their hockey game on Friday, Feb. 15, 2013, at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times ... more

A: At first, you are excited. The mood has changed since my freshman year (two years ago). Now, we're going in there for business. Before, it was the "oohs" and "ahhs" going on. The big Jumbotron. The ESPN interviews. We are going in there with the mindset that it's great that we are here, but we have been there before. We want to make a statement now.

Q: You are the second-leading scorer on this team (36 points).

A: I think so. I haven't checked, to be honest with you. People will say, "Oh yeah, sure," but I haven't. I have been trying to keep away from that.

Q: Do you have a favorite hockey player?

A:Sidney Crosby now. Growing up, I'm a Toronto guy, so Wendel Clark was my favorite. He is a big reason why I wear No. 17. I wore 26 in juniors, but when I got here, I was pretty pumped to know 17 was available. Sidney Crosby has my full attention now. Everything he does, how he thinks the game, how he sees the game.

Q: Is it hard not to look ahead to Saturday and think of what could happen? Or don't you do that?

More Information

Union (30-6-4) vs. Boston College (28-7-4)

When: 5 p.m. Thursday

Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia

TV: ESPN2

A: We try to avoid that. You don't want to look past an opponent. You never want to do that, no matter who you are playing. We are playing against a great team, and Boston College isn't second in the country for no reason. They bring it every night, and they will make us work for 60 minutes. That is something we like to do, to wear teams down. That is our work ethic, the staple of our team. They won't give us a night off, that is for sure.

Q: Do you think RPI will be cheering for you?

A: (laughs). I would like to think so. ECAC team. Last year we were cheering for both Yale and Quinnipiac (ECAC teams in the Frozen Four). It's good to see ECAC teams up there, but that being said, it's our rival, so I don't really know. I would hope so, but with everything that went on, everyone thinks there is bad turmoil between us. All that stuff that people try to bring up from that day is in the past. Hockey is a sport of emotion, and everyone got caught up in it. To get back to your question, I would hope they would cheer for us. I think we would do the same for them.

A: Yeah. With that shaved head he has now, he looks pretty scary. He is very approachable. You will always get honesty from him, whether you like it or not. It's a pretty stand-up quality to have. He tells it how it is. There is no beating around the bush with him.

Q: If you could have dinner with three people, living or dead, who would they be?

A: I would love to sit down with Sid (Crosby) just to pick his brain for a couple of hours. I would say (actor) Ryan Gosling. I am a fan of all his movies, so he would be up there. How about (actress) Kate Upton? Having dinner with her would be the only way I would get to talk to her (laughs).

Q: If there was a movie made about your life, and you could pick the guy to play you, who would it be?

A: That's a good one. I would say either Bradley Cooper or Ashton Kutcher. It has to be a good-looking guy who is pretty funny.